A (Very) Short History of Christmas

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

I realize that Christmas hasn't always been celebrated as it is today, but I was surprised to learn just how many changes the day has gone through over the years:

• Dec. 25 was a pagan holiday before it was a Christian feast day, and it was a commercial and secular holiday before it was a religious holiday.

• In the early days of Christianity, Pope Julius I chose December 25th to celebrate the Feast of the Nativity in order to take the focus away from other pagan festivals occurring during this time of year. For many years the day was sort of a winter Mardi Gras.

• Early Americans, if they celebrated the holiday at all, did it in the traditional style, with drunken revelry. The Puritans who settled in America did not celebrate Christmas; it was actually illegal to celebrate the holiday in Boston from 1659 to 1681. Congress was regularly in session on Christmas Day.

• The holiday started changing in the 19th century. Charles Dickens wrote "A Christmas Carol" in 1834. The book portrayed Christmas as more family-oriented and less of a bacchanalia. Clement Clarke Moore wrote “The Night Before Christmas" in 1822, which helped popularize the image of St. Nick. Merchants began to push the idea of exchanging Christmas presents as an end in and of itself. By the end of the 1800s, Christmas had been established as a secular holiday, and it was declared a federal holiday in 1870.

• Christmas wasn't decreed a Holy Day of Obligation (with obligatory Mass attendance) by the Catholic bishops in the United States until 1884.

If My Feet Are Happy, Then I'm Happy

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

No matter how organized I am, the days leading up to Christmas are always hectic.  On top of the regular daily activities, there's a multitude of last-minute holiday details to take care of. However, today I was able to handle everything with ease, thanks to an early present I received from a co-worker last week--a pair of fluffy red-and-white lounge socks infused with shea butter and fragrance.

When I woke up this morning, it was gloomy and cold.  I felt the need for some pampering, so I decided to try out my new socks.  I've never had anything like these before, so I didn't know what to expect.  After I showered, I put them on and slid my feet into my house shoes. WOW! These could be the most comfortable socks ever.  I wore them as I cleaned the house, cooked, and wrapped presents.

I would have left them on them all day, but I had to leave the house for a bit and they were too thick to wear with my tennis shoes.  I put on a different pair of socks, but as soon as I got home I changed back into plush comfort.

I'll be washing these socks tonight so I can wear them again after work tomorrow!

Light Up The Night

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

Tony and I enjoy looking at Christmas lights, so last night after dinner we set out on an adventure to see what we could find.  Our area has several professional lighting displays, but on weekend nights they're really crowded.  We decided to concentrate on smaller displays and avoid the driving gridlock.

Our first destination was in South St. Louis.  Instead of driving on the highway, Tony took the smaller roads.  That made the trip take a bit longer, but we also got a chance to see several interesting displays along the way.  Finally we reached  "Candy Cane Lane", also known as the 6500 block of Murdoch (behind the Chippewa Ted Drewes). There were about a dozen houses on each side of the street, and each one was lit up. The street also had candy-cane colored lights wrapped around the trees and draped across the street from one side to another.

I tried to take a picture with my phone's camera, but I couldn't do the setting justice:

We parked the car and walked up the street to get a better view of the displays.  The homeowners had put a lot of work into their decorations.  There was a group of high school girls handing out candy canes and accepting donations to help build houses on the Gulf Coast.  Next to them was a man playing carols on a accordion.

We got back in our car and left Candy Cane Lane, then drove up and down several other streets in the neighborhood.  It was worth our time; a good percentage of the houses were lit up.  After a few minutes Tony drove back to the main road and we headed east. Our next destination was just short of downtown at the Anheuser Busch brewery.

 It took a bit of guessing to figure out which entrance to the complex to use, but once we got in it was amazing!  The company has been decorating for the holidays for years.  Their displays use more than 80,000 lights to outline the buildings and landscape.   Once again, my camera failed me:

Our last stop was a restaurant, where we got dessert before heading back home.  This time Tony took Interstate 44 west so we could drive past several companies in Fenton that put up big light displays in front of their buildings.  It was an appropriate ending to the night.

Oh, What Fun

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

I don't work on Fridays, but the day is still quite structured...the morning and early afternoon are filled with meetings and errands and before I know it, it's time to start dinner.  I enjoy all the projects and tasks, but even so it's great to change things up now and then.  Today I got to do just that thanks to Mother Nature.  Yesterday she delivered a sheet of ice that covered the roads and gave me a snow day, but also kept me housebound.  None of the day's Christmas shopping and tasks got done.  After I moved all those activities to today, along with the other items I'd planned on doing, my schedule was packed!

Before I went to bed last night, I decided that since I had to do all the things anyway, I'd make an event out of it.  This morning I dressed in a Christmas sweatshirt, jeans, and boots.  After breakfast I said goodbye to the cats and grabbed my list and an apple (for a mid-morning snack).  I left the house at 8:15, the same time I'd leave for work.  However, at the end of my street I turned the opposite direction and headed east.  What a beautiful day!  It cold, but the sun was shining.  There was no ice on the roads, and the traffic jams I'd anticipated were a non-issue.

I knew what I needed to do at each stop, so I could move quickly.  Most people I saw were in a festive mood, and I didn't let the few Grinches bother me.  Four hours later, I'd made seven stops (including lunch), and I was shopped out and ready to go home. I wish I could say I'm finished with all I need to do for Christmas, but there's a few things still need to get done.  However, thanks to my wonderful day today, the end is in sight.

Treelight

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

Now that the boys are grown and out of the house, many of our current "getting ready for the holidays" activities are different than the ones we did when they were young.  Now, there's no need to help the boys make presents for their aunts and uncles, and it's been a long time since we've made a visit to Santa.  However, some activities are timeless.  Tonight Tony and I ate our dinner picnic-style in front of the tree in the living room.

Back in the day, everyone looked forward to eating by treelight.  The kids liked it because they got to sprawl on the floor instead of sitting at the table and using proper table manners. Tony and I enjoyed the family activity, but I also secretly liked it because it was an easy cooking night.  I'd serve finger foods like bagel bites or chicken nuggets that I just had to throw in the oven.

Tonight's dinner was a bit more elegant. I made French bread pizza from thick slices of hearth bread, cut vegetables for crudités, and got ranch dressing. Dessert was an assortment of cookies from the freezer.  I spread a red and gold tablecloth on the living room floor and put out red napkins.  Tony carried the food into the room, then I turned out all the lights and we sat down.

The soft glow of the tree provided just enough light to eat by.  It made for a perfect meal.

What's In Your Kettle?

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

I started seeing the iconic Salvation Army bell ringers with their red kettles before Thanksgiving, but since I don't get serious about Christmas shopping until December, I can't donate that early.  However, it's getting mighty close to Christmas, so today I decided to put money in each of the kettles I saw along my route as I ran errands.

My first stop was a drug store close to work.  I've seen the same bell ringer each time I've shopped there this season.  Like the vast majority of ringers I've come across, he's super friendly.  (One day I saw him helping customers carry bags to their car!)  Even when I didn't donate, he still had a nice word to say.  Today, when I slipped a bill in his kettle, he beamed and wished me a Merry Christmas.

Stop number two was a grocery store to get some meat.  However, I needed it sliced and I forgot this store doesn't have a butcher counter for special requests, so I turned around and left.  The kettle here was unmanned when I entered, but there was a ringer on my way out.  He had a steaming cup of coffee, which I'm sure tasted good in this frigid weather.  I made my deposit, and he smiled and said "Thank You".

Still looking for my meat, I went to another grocery store where I knew I could get what I was looking for.  This store had a female ringer out front.  We exchanged pleasantries as I put money in her kettle, and she wished me a Merry Christmas.  I made my purchase and left the store. As I walked past the ringer, she told me to "have a blessed holiday".

The next few stops didn't have a kettle out front, but I realized as I was driving out of the last strip mall that even though I wasn't planning on shopping at the big box store there, I could make a swing through their parking lot and donate money one more time.   The bell ringer here must have been taking a break, because the stand was unoccupied, but I stopped my car in the fire lane, jogged over to the kettle, and slid my money in.  I really don't care if I get a personal thanks if the cause is good.

All God's Creatures

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

It's been quite cold here.  Yesterday on the way to work the temperature was 4°. Today was a bit warmer, and tomorrow the high is supposed to be a balmy 29°.  This afternoon, when I tried to take a drink out of the metal water bottle I keep in the car, it had a half-inch thick layer of ice around the perimeter.

The cold weather means that the inch of snow that came down on Saturday night is sticking around.  Our deck is covered in snow, so it's hard to get to the bird feeder that hangs from a shepherd's hook on the rail.  Normally under these circumstances I'd leave it empty, but in the spirit of Christmas, the last few days I've been making a special effort to provide food to all the creatures that stop in to eat.  (Even the squirrels. In this nasty weather I'm not begrudging them a share of the food.)

The layer of snow makes it hard, but I now have a system. Once I put on my coat and boots in the family room I grab the container of bird seed and open the outside door.  I've done the job so many times now there's a nice path around the deck perimeter from the door to the feeder.  I fill it up, then retrace my steps back to the door.

The family room is carpeted, so I don't want to walk in with snow all over my feet. After I open the door, I set the container on the countertop right inside the door, shake the snow off one boot, take it off, set it on the counter, then step halfway inside.  I repeat the process with the other shoe.  Once I'm completely inside, I close the door and carry the snow-laden boots to the kitchen to dry.

I wonder if the critters know how much work I'm going through for them?

Sing-Along

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

Over the weekend a rock hit my windshield while I was driving and made a smile-shaped crack about an inch long.  I wasn't sure if it could be repaired, or if it meant a new windshield, but I figured I'd call the insurance company today after work and find out what they thought.

However, halfway to work this morning I heard a pop, and watched as the crack spread out to the right, then the left.  By time I pulled into the parking lot I had a two foot long horizontal imperfection across the middle of the windshield.  Now it would DEFINITELY need replacement!

I know from past experience that if you use the insurance company's "preferred" providers the price is usually less, so after I got into the building I dialed the claims number, and was soon talking to the third-party glass company they use.  The representative was very nice, and it didn't take him long to set up an appointment for a mobile replacement at my house this afternoon.  However, the technician could arrive any time within a four-hour window, so I came straight home after work and cleared my calendar for the rest of the day.

I might have been stuck at home, but there was plenty to do.  I started dinner, did a craft activity, a bit of house cleaning, and some computer stuff.  Instead of turning on the radio for background music while I worked, I loaded up the CD player with Christmas disks, including one of my favorites, Holiday Sing Along With Mitch. Since I listened (and sang along to) to this record every year while I was growing up, the season just doesn't seem right without at least one playing.

Won't you sing along with me?

Once A Bad Kitty, Always A Bad Kitty

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

Years ago I had to find places to hide Christmas presents from prying eyes. Now, though, since (I'm pretty sure) Hubby Tony doesn't snoop around looking to see what he's getting, I just shove things in the back of my closet as I buy them.  It was getting hard to move around in there, so today I wrapped the first of the Christmas presents and put them under the tree.

Today's session took place on my bedroom floor.  To make wrapping the job easy, I keep everything together in a red-and-green plastic storage container.  The long, skinny box holds paper, tissue paper, bags, ribbon, and bows, as well as scissors, tape, and pens for writing names on the tags.  All I have to do is open the box and I'm ready to go!

When Pepper (one of our cats) was a kitten he liked to play with cellophane tape and eat it.  I quickly learned that when I was wrapping presents I had to hide the tape dispenser when I wasn't using it or he'd grab it in his teeth and carry it off. The first Christmas he was so small that the dispenser kept hitting the floor as he tried to run.  It was hilarious!

Pepper is now a mature 8 years old.  Last year he wasn't interested in tape, so I figured I wouldn't have a problem this year.  I figured wrong.  As I was cutting paper to wrap the second present I saw something slinking away out of the corner of my eye.  It was Pepper, up to his old tricks with the tape.  However, today I was able to grab him and take the tape away before he got out of the bedroom.

For the rest of the wrapping session, I kept the tape under my leg when I wasn't using it.  No more problems.

Smells Like Christmas

When the boys were young, we used a Countdown to Christmas calendar. It had a pocket for each day that held a strip of paper with an activity that would help us get ready for Christmas. Even though I haven't used that calendar for many years, I still like the concept of spreading out the holiday activities, and try to do one or two things every day to make the season less hectic.

I haven't exercised all week, which is a bad idea at this time of year. The last few days have been nonstop eating, and the food orgy will continue for the foreseeable future.  When Hubby Tony suggested a trip to the gym today, it didn't take me long to agree.

The gym was pretty empty when we got there.  I did enough aerobics to get nice and sweaty, used a couple of machines, then decided to call it a day and hit the shower.  We had a couple of errands to run on the way home, and it was too cold to be running around with damp clothes on.

The women's locker room has two showers.  They're usually in good shape, so I was surprised to see that one of them had a large puddle of water on the floor  I got in the other one, turned on the water, and tried to get some soap from the wall dispenser.  It was empty!  I thoroughly rinsed my hair and body with water, but  I couldn't shake the feeling that I didn't smell good.

One of our stops on the way home was Whole Foods, where I had an inspiration.  The store carries a selection of perfumed and essential oils with testers in their body department, and  I decided I'd take advantage of them.  In honor of the season, I dabbed a bit of peppermint on my wrists and behind my ears, and continued my errands smelling like a candy cane.